12.5.04
Hiatus: It's been a while, as I noted above. And a lot has happened in the last five months, both personally and in the outside world. In college football, there were surprises (it's just as well that I didn't bet a lot of money on Oklahoma in the Big XII championship, eh?) and a split national championship (the last time was when Tom Osborne - good guy by all accounts - was accorded a "Sympathy National Championship" in 1997 and split with Michigan). In hockey, the Capitals played horribly enough to get the top overall pick in the NHL draft in June. The Red Wings played great regular season hockey, but mediocre playoff hockey and Dave Lewis will be very, very lucky if he is with that organisation in the fall. And in politics, Dr Dean screamed his way right out of the Democratic nomination, leaving the door open for "Common Man" Johnny Kerry, (War Criminal - Taxachusetts).
As Michael Savage says, "Grab an Arab prison": But more recently, folks have been calling for the head of Don Rumsfeld because of these incidents in Saddam's old torture hall, Abu Ghraib. Thinking about it, it reminds me of the movie A Few Good Men. In the movie, two junior enlisted personnel were put on trial for killing another enlisted man. They claimed, truthfully, that they had been issued orders to haze the man because he had not performed his duties as well as his officers would have liked, and that the act of hazing is what killed him. In the movie, I never had any problem with the act of hazing in and of itself - personally, I was glad that the officers in the movie cared enough about the combat efficiency of their unit to help whip a man into shape. My only problems with the officers' conduct was that an order had been issued by the officers' superior proscribing this hazing, and that the officers had disobeyed this order. My other problem is that the officers had covered their actions up.
I know that I'm kind of wandering, so I'll explain what this has to do with the actions at Abu Ghraib: I don't have any problem with the use of such humiliation to break the prisoners down for interrogation per se - and my biggest question, were this legal, would be about the effectiveness of such humiliation in interrogation - but my major problem is with the fact that such actions are proscribed under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and under the Geneva Conventions, of which the United States is a signatory.
The murder of Nick Berg: Firstly, my condolences to Mr Berg's family. I cannot begin to imagine their grief.
Secondly, to address a side note, I do not know whether or not Mr Berg was in United States custody or in Coalition custody for nearly two weeks, as his father claims (and which Brigadier General Kimmit, USA, denies). I also do not know if Mr Berg declined an offer to fly to Jordan, courtesy of the State Department, as they now claim.
I do know this: the manner of his death is horrid, and I hope that the United States will not allow it to stand. Particularly grotesque was the killers' invocation of God in their ritual beheading. While I have no desire to see the video (available, apparently, through the Michael Savage Show), I heard some of the audio on my drive home this evening. My stomach quailed, and I thought for several moments that I was about to throw up. As I have no idea what to say, I will echo the President's sentiments in saying that perhaps the only good thing to come of this is a reminder of the nature of those few people who oppose freedom. I do not believe that firebombing would be out of line as a response to this. I would hope that the United States has the stones to respond forcefully to such an uncivilised act, and make the cost of such a ritual sacrifice so prohibitive to the untermenschen to keep them from again committing such an abomination before God.
Hockey: As I mentioned, the Caps played poorly enough to have a chance at the top pick in the draft - which they won in the draft lottery. I suppose a few words would be in order about the fire sale that happened over the course of the late winter.
I'll start with, perhaps, my favourite Capital from the 2002-3 season. I wish that Calle Johanssen had been given the opportunity to start the season in Washington. He had been intensely loyal to the organisation over previous seasons, and, even as old as he was, he would have been the 3rd or 4th defenceman and an invaluable on-ice teacher to a lot of the younger guys who only started getting big minutes this season. Not to mention that Washington would have received some sort of compensation when he would have been traded in the fire sale.
I was sorry to see Steve Konowalchuk go, and even sorrier to see him go to Colorado; not because I didn't think that he would do well there or have a chance to win a Cup; being a Detroit fan, quite the contrary. I hated the fact that the Avs picked up two very good forwards in Kono and Nikolishin.
I hope that the New York media eat Jagr alive. They'll certainly have fun trying, and if he plays as poorly next season (assuming there is a next season) as he did this season (and, to think of it, during his entire tenure with the Caps), all anyone will see of Hair-o-mir will be bones. I doubt that anyone here in Washington - or Pittsburgh, for that matter - will complain too loudly.
Sure was nice to see Anson Carter stop in again, if only for a few weeks.
Mike Grier was a solid player, and I'm sorry he left.
Robert Lang never was my favourite Capital, perhaps because he had that most hated of labels attached to his name, that of ex-Penguin. But, when he got traded to Detroit, and I started to see how much fun he had playing the game, I lamented the fact that I missed him doing that here in Washington. Not to mention that he only led the league in scoring for a long stretch while on arguably the worst team in the league.
I was glad to see Sergei Gonchar get a chance for a Cup - even if in the most cursed town in sports. I always enjoyed Sergei's play, because he had amazing vision on the ice.
The Washington Post published a photograph which featured the following sign, made by a kid from Frederick: "We didn't want him to go, you didn't want him to go, he didn't want to go. Why is he gone?" I was glad to see Peter Bondra get a chance at a Cup, but that photograph resonated very deeply with me. It brought some anger at management, but a lot of sadness that he was gone. To those of us Caps fans who started following hockey in the early '90s, he is Mr Capital. Some may say Yvon Labre or Dale Hunter, but, even thinking about it months later, it still depresses me to think that the consummate Washington Capital now wears a different number and is playing in another national capital.
I wish that Brendan Witt had been traded, because I've always thought him overrated. When he makes a check, for instance, he admires his work way too long. And he has a knack for taking rather stupid penalties.
As the trading deadline neared, I had hoped that Olie Kolzig had been traded, so that he wouldn't be stuck on the foundering S.S. Capitals.
Looking to the future: So who is or will become the new Mr Capital now? Kolzig? Witt? Jeff Halpern? Alexander Semin? Time will tell. In the short term, I would have to say Kolzig and Halpern. Hopefully someone else will step up next season and lift the Capitals above mediocrity. The Caps seem to have a solid nucleus of young players around which to build, and they showed a lot of effort in the last few weeks of the season, always a positive sign. Hopefully Glen Hanlon is the coach of the future. Like I said, a very positive sign that the players didn't give up on him.
As for the playoffs: Calgary is looking like a team of destiny. Darryl Sutter's coaching his ass off, not to mention that his players have badly outplayed their three opponents thus far (the three division winners out west, no less). Out east, I would guess that Philly has the advantage with their size, but Tampa has played over their heads all season and may do it again.
Zuletzt: One hopes that our political leaders remember Toby Keith's words when the next atrocity is committed:
This big dog will fight when you rattle his cage.
You'll be sorry that you messed with the U. S. of A.
'Cause we'll put a boot in your ass; it's the American way.
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